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It took a while, but the Des Moines metro was blanketed Saturday by its first significant snowfall of the season.

About 5.3 inches fell at Des Moines International Airport by 6 p.m., marking the third-latest date of the first snowfall of more than 1 inch in the area, according to the National Weather Service. In 1989, Des Moines didn't receive 1 inch of snow until Feb. 2, said Cory Martin, a NWS meteorologist.

“We’ve seen significant snowfalls in Iowa but they’ve just missed the metro.” Martin said Saturday evening, adding the Des Moines area wouldn't likely see much more snow.

Totals reached nearly a foot in southern parts of Iowa, as steady precipitation whitened much of the state. A winter weather warning remained in the southeast section of Iowa, but it had been lifted in central Iowa in the early evening.

Martin said temperatures in Des Moines aren't expected to dip much during a foggy Saturday night and any additional snowfall will be sparse and patchy. No snow is expected Sunday with highs in the low 30s.

“Not a whole lot going on," Martin said of the forecast. "Not a lot of wind or cold air coming in with this system as we may have seen with many traditional winter storm system."

Precipitation isn't expected to return to central Iowa until the end of the upcoming week.

'Accidents as expected' as motorists deal with snowy roads

The worst Des Moines-metro damage came in the early portion of the day, according to the Iowa State Patrol.

Sgt. Nathan Ludwig said between 1-6 a.m. the eastbound lane on Interstate 80 at Merle Hay Road was closed "after a semi-truck lost control and was jackknifed by another semi-truck." Only minor injuries resulted from the wreck.

Between 12 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Saturday, the state patrol attended to 104 crashes and assisted 123 motorists statewide with no fatalities or significant incidents, Ludwig said.

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Drivers make their way down a partially snow covered Interstate 235 through downtown Des Moines just before dawn on Saturday, Jan. 12, 2019. (Photo: Kelsey Kremer/The Register)

"What we've basically seen since last night is some minor accidents and cars in medians and ditches, mostly caused by driving too fast for conditions," he said Saturday afternoon. "It's Jan. 12 and we've got our first significant snowfall and it seems some may have forgotten how to drive in these conditions, but surely we'll all remember soon."

Likewise, Des Moines police were busy dealing with the weather. Department spokesman Sgt. Paul Parizek said between 10 p.m. Friday and 7:30 a.m. Saturday, officers responded to 33 crashes. Nine of them were hit-and-run cases, one involved a drunken driver, Parizek said. Just one minor injury was reported.

More than 200 snow ordinance parking citations had been issued by early Saturday afternoon, Parizek said. Parizek said he did not have any updated numbers as of 7 p.m. Saturday.